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I had a very nice couple of nights at the Andaz West Hollywood and, if I’m being honest, I didn’t really need to book into the Los Angeles Airport Marriott but laziness got the better of me. As part of my recent trip I had an early start at LAX to catch a flight to Dallas so, rather than stay in WeHo, I decided to see if I could book something at the airport to make the early morning a little more bearable.
Los Angeles Airport Marriott Cost
While I do my best to book my hotel stays directly through the hotel chain where possible (to ensure I get elite status recognition and points) I always check to see what the hotels cost through 3rd party sites/OTAs. That way if I find something cheaper than what the hotel chain is offering I can invoke (or at least attempt to invoke) the hotel chain’s “Best Rate Guarantee” (or whatever they choose to call it).
Marriott’s best rate guarantee says:
If within 24 hours of making your reservation, you find a lower hotel rate for the same hotel, room type and reservation dates, and submit a qualified guarantee form, we’ll match the rate + give you an extra 25% discount on the room.
And in my experience, they’re pretty good at sticking to their own rules.
It’s not that often that I find a Marriott property cheaper elsewhere but this happened to be one of those occasions. The Marriott rate was $241.75 including taxes….
…while a competing site showed the total cost as £101 (approximately $150) including taxes:
I booked the stay through Marriott and immediately submitted a Best Rate Guarantee claim. Within 24 hours I had an email reply and Marriott had honored their guarantee:
I have to admit that I was pretty happy with myself – a $209 room for $84 isn’t a bad bit of work 🙂
Location
The Marriott LAX is one of the closest hotels to Los Angeles airport and, as a result, is very popular with a lot of airline crews (including American). The hotel even has a dedicated check-in desk for airline crew.
Even with the enormous amount of work going on at LAX at the moment, the shuttle ride from the hotel to the Tom Bradley Terminal (in the early morning) is around 15 minutes allowing for a stop here and there.
First Impressions & Check-in
The Los Angeles Airport Marriott isn’t going to win any architectural awards anytime soon…..it’s a very bland looking 1970’s build that really doesn’t have much charm to it. But then how many airport hotels do you know that have charm?
Los Angeles Airport Marriott
Inside things look a lot more modern and the entryway is nice enough….
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Entry
…and there was plenty of space at check-in….which was pretty close to empty when I arrived around 5pm:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Check In
Check-in was quick and I was informed that my Platinum status had got me an upgrade to a Junior Suite.
Once I was away from the lobby level, the hotel started to feel dated. The off white/yellow walls and the heavily patterned carpets in the hallways did nothing to make it feel like the hotel had embraced the 21st century.
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Hallway
And the decor didn’t exactly improve in the room.
Los Angeles Airport Marriott Room
The junior suite I had been allocated was towards the rear of the hotel and, if I remember correctly, on the top floor.
As soon as I opened the door to my room the first thing that stuck me was the old-fashioned decor. What is that carpet doing there?!
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite
As you walk in to the room the bathroom is on the left and the rest of the room is straight ahead of you. The bathroom area is divided into two:
Before you reach the main part of the bathroom there’s an area with a sink and opposite that is the closet:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite Bathroom
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite Bathroom
Past this area is the main part of the bathroom with another sink….
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite Bathroom
….and a bath/shower:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite Bathroom
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite Bathroom
The toiletries on offer were from the Thann range of products:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite Toiletries
The bathroom was functional and the sink areas were perfectly ok but I couldn’t shake the feeling that it all felt a bit old and unloved.
The decor and furnishings didn’t improve too much in the rest of the room.
As the room opened up there was a big screen TV and a desk…..
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite
…and an armchair and sofa from the 1950’s:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite
If there was a high point to the room (and I had to look really hard to find one) it was that the king size bed was very comfortable:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite
The room was a good size and everything seemed clean – so I definitely don’t have any complaints on those fronts – but management really need to get their grandmothers’ furniture and carpets out of the rooms and replace them with something a little more modern.
It doesn’t have to be trendy, fancy or high-end…it simply shouldn’t look like the place has been crying out for a make-over since Reagan was in power.
View
As I mentioned earlier, my Junior Suite was at the back of the hotel so it was looking at the Four Points by Sheraton and one of the LAX runways:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Junior Suite View
I would have been a good view for any Av Geeks out there as there were a lot of planes coming in that evening…although I have to say that the room was reasonably well insulated from the noise.
Connectivity
As a Marriott Platinum elite I had free access to the hotel’s “premium wifi” which is the faster of the two WiFi networks on offer. I had a lot of trouble getting my MacBook air to connect but it turned out that was a fault of Safari than the network.
Hint: If you’re a Mac user staying at theLos Angeles Airport Marriott, log in to the network via Chrome or Firefox…Safari doesn’t work too well (although once you’re logged in you can use Safari to surf the web to your heart’s content).
The dest in the room was very well served for power with the main lamp offering two power sockets:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Connectivity
And an power strip on the desk itself offering 3 further power sockets….
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Connectivity
…and 2 USB ports:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Connectivity
As great as the connectivity was at the desk it was poor by the bed – no power sockets at all on either side of the bed and that’s unacceptable.
Dining
I didn’t do any dining at the hotel but, as I knew I’d be writing this review, I did take note of what was on offer.
The hotel offers the following:
- JW’s Steakhouse
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – JW’s Steakhouse
- Champions Sports Bar
- A cafe/restaurant called Latitude 33
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Latitude 33
- Starbucks in the lobby
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Starbucks
Los Angeles Airport Marriott Executive Lounge
The lounge was one floor below my room and was pretty empty when I arrived (food wasn’t put out until later):
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge
Although at the time I wasn’t there the food wasn’t out there were soft drinks and coffee available….
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge
And an incredible opportunity to put yourself into a diabetic coma…..
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge
I have no idea who thought it was a good idea to put half a candy store on offer in the Executive Lounge but America’s fight with obesity is getting more understandable by the day.
The lounge has a token nod to business facilities with a single iMac and a printer/copier for guests to use:
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge
The lounge was almost directly under my room but, rather than facing north towards the hills, it faces west towards the airport – you can actually see activity on both of the LAX runways from the lounge.
Los Angeles Airport Marriott – Executive Lounge View
As lounges go it wasn’t anything to write home about but it was ok and serves a purpose.
Other Hotel Amenities
Judging by the various signs I saw in the elevators and in the lobby the Los Angeles Airport Marriott has a number of amenities and services that I didn’t get a chance to see or use:
- Fitness Center
- Swimming pool
- Guest Laundry (a very good idea)
- Gift Shop
- Hair Salon
- Hertz rental counter
- FedEx Office
And a lot of meeting rooms.
Overall/Conclusion
The staff were all super friendly and very welcoming – there can be no faulting the hotel on that count – but, from a decor point of view, it needs a complete overhaul to drag it into modern times.
Nothing about the hotel (outside of the friendly staff) made me want to come back again. Nothing. If that’s what a Junior Suite looks like I don’t want to know what a regular room is like. If the hotel is going to charge in excess of $200/night it needs to get its house in order and do something to warrant those prices.
I’ve stayed at the Westin, the Renaissance and the Hilton at LAX (review on the way) and all were decidedly cheaper and in significantly better shape than this Marriott. And there’s really no excuse for that.
Maybe the owners of the hotel and Marriott are happy to sit back and take the cash that the airlines give them for all the nights that the crews stay there but it’s not like the traveling public doesn’t have options. There are a lot of hotels around LAX and I can see it being a long time before I give this Marriott another go…there’s no need.
